Railway hopper car



w. F.. DIETRlcHsoN Er AL 2,073,513

March 9, 1937.

RAILWAY HOPPER CAR Filed April 2l, 1934" 4 Sheets-Sheet l w -N w ww w wwwim ...elmlddimwdlolol mlolollolo :Flllllllllll o ooooooooooolmlololmlollmlo lolmlololmlo e o u m llrllm March 9, 1937. w. F.DIETRlcHsoN Al. 2,073,513 *A RAILWAY HOPPER CAR Filed April 2l, 1934 4Sheets-Sheet 2 ,anx-l@ March 9, 1937. w. F., DIETRlcHsoN Er Al.2,073,513 i RAILWAY HOPPER CARY Filed April 21, 1934 4 Sheets-Sheet 3March 9, 1937. w. F..D|E1RlcHsoN ET AL 2,073,513

RAILWAY HOPPER CAR Filed April 21, 1934 4 sheets-sheet 4 Ivy/fw@ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 9 1937 UNITED STATES RAILWAY HOPPER CAR WilliamF. Dietrichson,

Berwick, Pa., and Victor Willoughby, Ridgewood, N. J., assgnors toAmerican Car and Foundry Company, New

York, N. Y., a corporation of New Jersey Application April 21,

19 Claims.

This invention relates generally to railway hopper car constructions andhas particul/ar reference to means for controlling discharge of ladingtherefrom.

One object of the present invention is the provision of a new andimproved outlet arrangement for the hoppers of railway cars.

Another 'object of this invention is the provision of a new and improvedvalve means for controlling discharge of material from the hoppers ofrailway cars.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent from thefollowing description taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, in which Figure 1 is a sectional view through a portion of arailway hopper car showing the present invention applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a. sectional view through the car shown in Fig. l, a portionof the gure being taken on the line 2 2, Fig. 1, while the other portionof the figure is taken through the car at a point adjacent the bolster;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the hopper outlet arrangement, certainparts being broken away to disclose other parts in section;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view on the line 4 4, Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the outlet arrangement shown as attachedto the discharge end portion of a hopper;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view on the line 6 6, Figs. 1 and 3;

Fig. 7 is a sectional view on the line 1 1, Fig. 3;

Fig. 8 is an enlarged detail view of the valve operating device, showinga portion of the crank handle, a part of the gure being shown insection; and

Fig. 9 is a view on the line 9 9, Fig. 4.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, the hopper outletarrangement forming the subject matter of this invention is shown asapplied to a railway car having an underframe including center sills 2,a car body B provided with a plurality of hoppers C and a car roof D. Inthe instance shown in the drawings side plates 3 are shown as secured tothe upper edge portions of the side walls 4 of the car and serve as thesupporting means for the roof D. The car body may be of any preferred ordesired construction, an

example of which is shown in the drawings, particularly Figs. 1 and 2,and said body is so formed as to provide the before mentioned hoppers C.

The present invention is concerned primarily with a means for closingthe outlet portion of the hopper and for controlling discharge 0f lading1934, Serial No. 721,674

therethrough, said means comprising an outlet arrangement formed as aunitary casting E. 'Ihe casting E comprises a frame including an uppermarginal attaching portion 6 formed to the contour of the dischargeportion of the hopper C and hence substantially rectangular in form asindicated clearly in Fig. 3. The attaching portion 6 is connected to theoutlet portion of the hopper in any suitable manner as by being weldedthereto, both externally and internally, as shown at 8. This rectangularattaching portion 6 merges into a substantially circular neck I0 whichdepends from the attaching portion 6 as clearly shown in Fig. 4 and,depending from the neck Ill is a skirt portion I2 of greater diameterthan the neck, also as clearly shown in Fig. 4 and as illustrated inFigs. 1, 2, 5, 6, and 7. It can thus be seen that the outlet arrangementcomprises generally a unitary casting including the rectangularattaching portion 6 with the neck I0 and skirt portion I2 dependingtherefrom.

As shown clearly in Figs. 4 and 6 the neck portion Ill is rabbeted at I4to receive a gasket I6 preferably of resilient material such as rubberor rubber compound; said gasket I6 being held in place by spring metalretainer elements I8 secured to the neck portion I0 in any suitablemanner as by the fasteners 20 (see Fig. 3).

The neck I0 constitutes a discharge opening for material from the hopperand said opening is adapted to be closed by a valve 22 having dependingbearings 24 with which a crank shaft 26 is engaged whereby the valve issupported for reciprocation from closing to open position. The oppositeend portions of the crank shaft 26 are journalled in bearings 28 at theskirt portion of the casting E as shown in Figs. 3 and 4.

The crank shaft is adapted to be operated by a handle member 30 securedto one end portion of the crank shaft (see Figs. 3, 4, and 8) andarranged adjacent quadrant 32 secured to the casting E by bolts 34 orother suitable fasteners. The quadrant is provided with a plurality ofyspaced openings 36 adapted to receive a pin 38 carried by the handle 30whereby the position of the valve 22 may be regulated to controldischarge of lading from the hopper. As shown clearly in Fig. 8 the pin38 is provided with a handle 40 and with a shoulder 42 with which lattera spring 44 engages to urge the pin towards the quadrant 32 and toretain the pin in any desired opening 36.

At its periphery the valve 22 is provided with contacting members 46arranged to cooperate with guides 48 formed with the skirt portion ofithe casting and projecting radially tl'ie-f'eirto` as shown moreclearly in Fig. 3 whereby the valve 22 is guided vertically during itsmovement by the crank shaft. f

The valve 22 is provided with a stem 50 secured by a nut 52 andprojecting vertically upward therefrom as shown particularly in Figs. 4and 6, the stem 50 being of a length sufcient to extend through thebottom cover plate 54 of the center sills 2, the latter being shown aschannels and having a top cover plate 56. To the bottom cover plate 54of the center sills 2 is welded as at 58 or otherwise suitably attacheda tubular member 60 which may be a section of pipe or the like, thelower end portion of tubular member 60 being arranged below the bottomcover plate 54 while the upper end portion of said tubular memberprojects through the top cover plate 56 of the center sills and throughthe ridge sheet 64 and is welded to the latter as shown at 66. The upperend of the tubular member 60 is preferably closed by a cap 68.

The lower end portion of the pipe section 60 has a pipe flange 10secured thereto as by being threadedly engaged therewith as shown at 12and, fastened to this pipe flange 10 by suitable means such as the bolts14 is a guide plate 18 provided with elongated or enlarged boltreceiving openings 18 (see Fig. 9). At its central portion the guideplate 16 is provided with a plurality of openings 80 which definecontacting shoulders 82 for engaging the valve stem 50 as shown clearlyin Figs. 4 and 9. Due to the elongated or enlarged openings 18 in theplate 16 it will be apparent that the plate 16 may be adjusted toposition the valve stem within the tube 60 whereby the shoulders 82engage said valve stem and properly locate the stem 50 and the valve foreilcient operation. It is obvious that the provision. of the openings 18compensate for inaccuracies in construction and the plate 16 may beadjusted to a position such that the valve stem will be so held withinthe tubular member 60 that the valve 22 will properly contact with thevalve seat member or gasket I6 in the casting E when in closed position.'I'he plate 16 obviously serves to hold the valve in a proper positionfor seating against the gasket i6 and movement of the valve in thisposition is controlled by contact of the members 46 with the guides 48,

Secured to the skirt portion I 2 of the casting E and preferably formedintegral therewith and projecting radially therefrom are a plurality ofsets of lugs 84 which pivotally support bolts 86 adapted to engage ears88 formed with a cover 90 for closing the open end of the casting E asshown more clearly in Fig. 5. 'I'his cover serves as an additionalclosure element for the discharge portion of the hopper as will beapparent.

The lower end portion of casting E is provided with an annular bead 92which is adapted to support a flexible boot 84 when the cover 90 isremoved for the purpose of conveying material discharged through thehopper to a place of deposit.

In operation with the hopper C loaded the valve 22 is normally in theposition shown in Fig. 4 whereby to prevent leakage of material from thehopper. It is to be noted that an eiilcient seal is provided by reasonof the contact of the peripheral portion of the valve 22 with the gasketI6. The cover 98 is normally in the position shown in Fig. 5. Todischarge material from the hopper the cover 80 is removed by unfasten--ingY the bolts 86 and the boot 34 is supported or attached to theVskirt portion of the casting at the bead 82. Operation of the crankhandle 30 from the position shown in full lines in Fig. 5, clockwise, tothe position shown in dotted lines in said figure, obviously rotates thecrank shaft 26 to permit the valve 22 to move vertically downward in thecasting E and open the hopper to discharge the lading therefrom. 'I'heamount of valve opening is determined by the position of the pin 38 ineither of the openings 36 in quadrant 32. For a full open position thehandle 30 will be moved its full distance, the quadrant 32 beingprovided with a'stop element or shoulder 96 to limit movement of thehandle 30 (see Figs. 5 and 8). During downward movement of the valve 22the latterv is vertically guided by reason of the cooperative relationo1' the members 46 and the guides 48. The valve is further guided at itsvalve stem 58 by contact of the stem 50 with the projecting portions 82of the guide plate 16. Reversal of movement of the handle element 30causes an upward movement of the valve 22 as will be obvious to eitherrestrict the discharge opening or to completely close the same when thevalve 22 contacts with the gasket i6. It is to be understood that thisinvention includes the use of a valve, indicated at 22, the same beingthe element which controls movement or discharge of lading from thehopper and this valve is provided with a stem which extends upwardlytherefrom.

The drawings herein illustrate one embodiment of the present inventionbut it is to be understood that they are for illustrative purposes onlyand various changes in the form and proportions of the construction maybe made within the scope of the appended claims without departing fromthe spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a railway hopper car, a hopper outlet arrangement comprising aframe secured to the discharge end portion of the hopper and having avalve seat therein, a valve body arranged within the frame and adaptedto cooperate with the valve seat to close the hopper, a crank shaftjournaled in the frame below the valve body and operative to shift thevalve body longitudinally relative to the hopper, and guide elements inthe frame with which the valve body cooperates during its movements.

2. In a railway hopper-car, a hopper outlet arrangement comprising aframe secured to the discharge end portion of the hopper, a resilientvalve seat in said frame, a valve in the frame adapted to cooperate withthe valve seat to close the discharge end of the hopper, said valvehaving a stem projecting into the hopper, guide means for said stem,bearings depending from the valve, and a crank shaft journaled in theframe below the .valve and engaged with said bearings.

3. In a railway hopper cana hopper outlet arrangement comprising a framesecured to the discharge end portion of the hopper, a gasket in saidframe, spring elements secured to the frame and holding said gasket, avalve in the frame adapted to cooperate with the gasket to close thedischarge end of the hopper, bearing elements depending from the valve,a crank shaft journaled in the frame and engaging the bearing elements,said crank shaft being operative to shift the valve longitudinally inthe frame into and out of engagement with the gasket, guides in theframe with which the valve cooperates dlnig`its`movements, a valve stemprojecting upwardly from the valve, and means cooperating with the valvestem to guide the latter during movements of the valve.

4. In a railway hopper car, a hopper outlet arrangement comprising aframe secured to the discharge end portion of the hopper and providedwith a resilient valve seat, a valve convex in cross section arranged inthe frame and adapted to seat on the valve seat to close the hopper, acrank shaft journaled in the frame below the valve and connected withthe valve whereby the latter is supported, means for operating the crankshaft to actuate the valve to and from closed position with respect tothe hopper, guide members projecting radially into the frame at thelower portion thereof adapted to cooperate with the valve during itsmovements, and means for holding the crank shaft in predeterminedpositions whereby to regulate the extent of movement of the valverelative to the hopper. i

5. In a railway hopper car, a hopper outlet arrangement comprising aframe secured to the discharge end portion of the hopper and providedWith a resilient valve seat, a valve convex in cross section arranged inthe frame and adapted to seat on the valve seat to close the hopper, acrank shaft journaled in the frame below the valve and connected withthe valve whereby the latter is supported, means for operating the crankshaft to actuate the valve to and from closed position with respect tothe hopper, guide members projecting radially into the frame at thelower portion thereof adapted to cooperate with the valve during itsmovements, a valve stem rising upwardly from the valve, and means forguiding the valve stem during movements of the valve.

6. In a railway hopper car, a hopper outlet arrangement comprising aframe secured to the discharge end portion of the hopper and providedwith a resilient valve seat, a valve convex in cross section arranged inthe frame and adapted to seal on the valve seat to close the hopper, acrank shaft journaled in the frame below the valve and connected' withthe valve whereby the latter is supported, means for operating the crankshaft to actuate the valve to and from closed position with respect tothe hopper, guide members projecting radially into the frame at thelower portion thereof adapted to cooperate with the valve during itsmovements, a valve stem rising upwardly from the valve, means forguiding the valve stem during movements of the valve, and means forholding the crank shaft in pre-determined positions whereby to controlthe extent of movement of the valve relative to the hopper.

'7. In a railway hopper car comprising an underframe having center sillsprovided with top and bottom cover plates and a ridge piece secured tothe top cover plate, a hopper outlet arrangement comprising a framesecured to the discharge end portion of the hopper and provided with avalve seat, a valve movable longitudinally in said frame and adapted tocooperate with the valve seat to close the hopper, means for actuatingsaid valve, a tubular member extending through the top and bottom centersill cover plates and through the ridge piece and connected to saidbottom cover plate and the ridge piece, a valve stem rising upwardlyfrom the valve and extending into said tubular member, and means securedto said tubular member and arranged in cooperative relation with thevalve stem to guide the latter during movements of the valve.

. cover for the lower end of the'frame detachably secured to said frame.9. In arailway'hopper car formed with a discharge outlet, a controlmeans for said outlet including a casing depending from the hopper andhaving a valve seat, a plurality of spaced guide elements formed in thecasing and arranged below said valve seat, a valve for said valve seatpositioned by saidguide'elements and movable upwardly'v'in the casinginto seating position, and actuating means for said valve includingmeans journaled in the casing and secured to thevalve and so formed andarranged as to retain said valve in any desired position relative to theoutlet.

10. In arailway hopper car formed with a discharge outlet, a controlmeans for said outlet including a casing suspended from and su ported bythe lower end portion of said outlet having a valve seat, guide elementswithin said casing extending downward, from said valve seat, areciprocating valve for cooperating with said valve seat normallyengaging said guide elements during its travel, a stem ilxed to saidvalve and extending within said car, means within said car for guidingsaid stem, and means for operating said valve.

11. In a railway hopper car formed with an outlet opening, a dischargecasing ilxed below said opening including an upper reduced portionformed with a valve seat, and a lower enlarged portion, a valve forcooperating with said valve seat movable within the enlarged portion ofsaid casing, ribs radiating inwardly of the enlarged portion of thecasing for guidingjsaid valve during its movement, means for operatingsaid valve, and means for closing the lower end of said casing.

12. In a railway hopper car formed with an outlet opening, a dischargecasing fixed below said opening including an upper reduced portionformed with a valve seat, and a lower enlarged portion, a valve forcooperating with said valve seat movable within the enlarged portion ofsaid Icasing, ribs radiating inwardly of the enlarged portion of thecasing for guiding said valve during its movement, a stem fixed to saidvalve extending within said car, guide means for said stem above saidoutlet opening, means for operating said valve, and means for closingthe lower end of said casing.

13. In a railway hoppercar formed with an outlet opening, a dischargecasing fixed below said opening including an upper reduced portionformed with a valve seat, and a lower enlarged portion, a valve forcooperating with said valve seat movable within said casing, ribsradiating inwardly of the casing for guiding said valve during itsmovement, means for operating said valve including a crank fixed to saidcasing and connected with said valve.

14. A discharge outlet casing for hopper cars including a body having 'areduced portion so formed as to be adapted for attachment to a hopper atits discharge end 'portion and provided with a valve seat and anenlarged portion formed with inwardly radiating guide ribs.

15. In a railway hopper car having a discharge outlet, a casing arrangedat the outlet and provided with a valve seat, a valve within the casingand movable upwardly therein into seated position to close said outlet,said valve comprising a head portion provided with bearings, and a cranksupported by the casing and having its offset portion engaged with saidbearings whereby operation or said crank will actuate said valve.

16. In a railway hoppercar formed with a discharge outlet, a dischargecasing arranged at the outlet and having a reduced portion formed with avalve seat, a valve within the casing provided with a stem projectinginto thedischarge outlet, guiding means for the stem, said valve beingadapted to engage the valve seat to seal the discharge outlet, and meanssecured to the valve for actuating the latter.

17. In a railway hopper car having a hopper discharge outlet, a framearranged at the outlet exterior thereof and provided with a valve seat;a valve arranged within said frame andl below the outlet, said valvehaving a stem projecting into said outlet, guiding means for the stem,said valve being movable downwardly away from the outlet wherebymovement of material through the outlet during discharge is unobstructedwithin said outlet, and valve actuating means supported by the frame andengaged with said valve.

18. In a railway hopper car. a hopper outlet arrangement including avalve and valve stem positioned for vertical movement with respect tothe hopper and adapted to close the discharge end of the latter, meansabove the valve cooperating with the valve stem to guide said stem inits movements, means below the hopperoutlet "so arranged as to engagethe valve to guide the latter in its movements, and valve operatingmeans below the hopper and engaged with said valve.

19. In a railway hopper car, a hopper discharge outlet arrangementcomprising a frame secured to and supported by the outlet and providedwith a valve seat, a valve arranged in the frame adapted to engage theseat, valve operating means supported by the frame and secured to thevalve, a valve stem extending upwardly into the hopper, and guide meansengaging said stem, said guide means being so formed as to be capable ofadjustment to maintain proper movement of said valve.

WILLIAM F. DIEI'RICHSON. VICTOR WILLOUGHBY.

